A/N

I'm so sorry it's taken forever for me to update this fic! I just found it so difficult to get through the story, but I have no intention of stopping writing this - because there's still so much that could happen!

To briefly recap, Jo just met Bruce but Alfred has forbidden her from getting involved in his life - the effects of his words will become apparent in this chapter. Also, Jo is questioning her feelings for Oswald and whether or not she genuinely cares for him.

Thanks, please enjoy!


Oswald was surprised to find the apartment empty when he woke. Jo had left so suddenly, without so much as a note to explain her absence. If Oswald didn't know better, he would've been concerned for Jo's wellbeing; running out into the city in search of her. But Oswald did know Jo. He knew that there had to be a decent enough explanation – or just that she needed time to herself – thus Oswald following her would've done more harm than good. That was Jo all over; she was incredibly secretive, despite her own frustrations whenever she was the one being kept in the dark.

While Oswald was overjoyed that Jo had started to accept his affections once again, he was still sceptical regarding Jo's sudden forgiveness of him. Oswald wasn't a fool; he'd suspected that Fish had driven Jo to become involved with him again and the more that Oswald dwelled on this theory, the more it seemed probable. It wasn't like Oswald could blame Jo for this though; even if his actions had been private, he'd well and truly humiliated her in his treatment. And a part of him, a much darker side, had wanted to do so much more to punish her. It scared Oswald to think that he could've severely harmed Jo – or even killed her – yet his constant affection towards the performer had prevented him from crossing that line. Honestly that was the only thing keeping Jo alive, the fact that he loved her too much. She was Oswald's weakness.

Moving throughout the apartment, Oswald noted how different it looked. Evidently, Jo had lacked the time and resolve to clean up after herself; the empty bottles around the sink and scattered clothes across the floor suggested that she hadn't been spending a lot of time at home lately. To an extent, Oswald blamed himself; Jo's best friend had been murdered in the apartment upstairs, thus resulting in an evacuation of the whole block, with people only just feeling comfortable enough to move back in. Although Kitty's murder had been written off as a mere accident, with nobody suspecting any foul play, Oswald knew that he had a long way to go to earn Jo's trust once again; he'd taken so much from her and wanted nothing more than to redeem himself.

Deciding to try and prove himself to her, Oswald began tidying the apartment as best he could; regarding it as too small a gesture to make it up to Jo for all his misdeeds, but hoping that it would at least be a start.


Oswald heard Jo's heels on the stairs and quickly proceeded to set the table; placing the plate of toast in the centre, along with the orange juice he'd bought at the corner store – hoping to nip Jo's apparent alcoholism in the bud before it became a very serious issue.

When Jo opened the door, she barely paid any regard to Oswald's efforts; instead kicking off her heels and heading through to the bedroom without so much as a glance in Oswald's direction. Furrowing his brow, Oswald knocked on the door, feeling curious as to what had caused the declination in Jo's mood. "Are you okay, Josephina?"

There was no reply.

"Josephina, I…" Oswald glanced back at the breakfast he'd prepared. "I made breakfast. Are you hungry?"

"I only have liquid breakfasts." Jo replied quickly from inside the room, sitting with her back against the door and knees pressed up to her chest.

Oswald frowned when he recognised Jo's muffled cries from the other side of the door. "Josephina, please let me in…"

"You should go, Oswald. I'm not worth your time." Jo insisted, trying her hardest to maintain the firmness in her voice. "I was just using you, you know. Fish told me to use my charm to get inside your head." She laughed wryly. "What charm? All I do is lie and drink and throw myself at any guy who calls me pretty."

Oswald would've been lying if he'd have said that Jo's confession didn't feel like a complete betrayal, a stab in the back, but because he'd always suspected so it seemed easy enough to forgive her for it. Besides, Oswald knew that he deserved some pain to act as retribution to his own actions against her. "You needn't feel bad about what you did to me. I deserve it." Oswald insisted, leaning against the door to listen closely to Jo's movements. When Oswald heard her stand to fumble with the door handle, he grew hopeful; only to furrow his brow when he saw how visibly distraught Jo was.

"I don't feel bad, Oswald." Jo replied quietly, emerging from the bedroom. "I feel disgusted with myself. I've been so hung up on climbing the ladder, of gaining power, that I've done some terrible things lately." She sighed, wiping the tears from her eyes quickly. "I might as well have held a gun to Liza's head and pulled the trigger myself because it's my fault she's dead."

"She shouldn't have upset you. She was playing Falcone for a fool while trying to take your place."

Jo shook her head, "I only told you about that because I knew it would get her out of the picture. She was a good person really, I was just jealous. And because of me, Fish is god-knows where. She could already be dead; she was like a mother to me and I sold her out."

"Falcone was already suspicious of Fish's motives." Oswald insisted, if only to ease Jo's guilt, as he took her shoulders. "Nobody can blame you for wanting to survive, Josephina. All you've ever wanted to do is stay alive."

"But is it really worth it? I'm 25 years old and I've done nothing with my life." She whispered, realising how true Alfred's words had been – they had hit her hard, like a slap in the face. A wake up call. "Who would even miss me if I just disappeared?"

"Josephina, please don't talk like that. You know that I'd miss you…" Oswald lifted her chin to force her eyes to meet his; desperate to make all her self-loathing go away. "Just let me try to understand what's going on in your head."

But she refused to let him in. "I can't even make sense of it myself, Oswald." Jo whispered, moving away from Oswald towards the window. "I know I said that I wanted power, that I wanted to be someone in this city…but at what cost? I've lost all chances of having a normal life."

"We could have a normal life, Josephina. The life you wanted with Charlie…I can give that to you." Oswald insisted, his expression soft as he desperately tried to catch her attention as she stood with her back to him. "I love you. From the moment I saw you I…I felt this connection. It won't be long until I take this city from Falcone – then we can be truly happy. Our torment will finally be worth it."

"You don't get it, do you?" Jo glanced over her shoulder, dark tears falling from her eyes despite her best efforts to maintain her façade. "Because of my obsession with power, I have lost everything..!" As Jo turned to face him, Oswald couldn't help but recognise that look of helplessness – and he realised how truly alike he and Jo were. Except she was resisting her original ambition. "Since I got involved with you and Fish, everyone I care about has got hurt in the crossfire. I've indirectly killed so many people; Liza and probably Fish – I couldn't even save Kitty. And you. Maroni is suspicious of you because I told him the truth."

"What?" Oswald frowned, unable to believe what Jo was saying. "You told Maroni?"

Jo nodded, her head low to express her guilt. "I'm so sorry; I didn't know what I was thinking but I was so angry with you. But we can leave Gotham. If you want a fresh start, we can leave right now." It sounded crazy, some spontaneous idea that had suddenly come to mind, but at this point Jo was running short of ideas. If Maroni didn't enact his revenge on Jo, Fish had the potential to return and there would be no doubt that she'd discover Jo's transgressions – her ultimate betrayal. And then what? Neither Maroni nor Fish would kill Jo, not at first, instead they'd target those close to them. Nora would certainly get caught in the crossfire and, if the mob bosses were as smart as they appeared, a little digging would've revealed her true parentage – and her relation to one of the richest families in Gotham. As a result Bruce could've been harmed and, while Jo couldn't reveal such a secret to Oswald, she saw it as sufficient reason to leave.

"We could go anywhere." Jo whispered, taking his arm with a gentle smile. "We could…we could go to Europe; nobody would ever find us there. Just you and me."

Oswald thought for a moment; smiling at the notion of leaving with Jo, yet there was so much holding him back. After all, it had been his ambition to take over Gotham for so long. Frankly Oswald had given up so much, he'd endured so much pain, just to claim the crown. And now he was so close…but would it all be pointless if he lost Jo?

"I think we should stay. There's no need to be afraid; I will never let anyone hurt you, Josephina." Oswald smiled comfortingly and gently brushed away a tear that fell down her cheek. "Besides, I could never leave mother."

Jo sighed and nodded in understanding. Despite her disdain when it came to Gertrud, Jo accepted that Oswald would always be devoted to his mother; it had been evident from the morning in their apartment that the two of them had always relied on one another, and Jo could never compete with that. "Alright, we…we'll stay." Jo replied, her lip trembling slightly as she spoke those words of affirmation. Although she never once looked Oswald in the eye.


Oswald and Jo spent the rest of the day in each other's embrace; lounging on the sofa as they read their favourite Shakespearean lines. However, as evening approached, Oswald knew that he had to leave and attend to his business at the club. Jo stood up from the sofa to fix Oswald's tie, her hands gentle as she straightened the material.

"I can do that myself…" Oswald chuckled, glancing down as Jo's fingers caressed his tie, and then his suit.

"I know…" Jo smiled softly, "but I want to help. You know how much I love a man in a suit." She smooth her hands down the front of his blazer, before placing a soft kiss on his lips. "I love you."

Her words made Oswald overjoyed; tittering excitedly he held her close. "Oh I love you too, Josephina. My beautiful dove." He closed his eyes as he became overcome with happiness, because she really had meant those three words this time. "I promise, when I come back from work, we can talk some more. I've got so many plans for us, my dear."

Jo feigned a smile, her heart swelling with sadness as she wrapped her arms around him. Because she wasn't going to be there when he returned.

Sure, it was a brash decision. One that hadn't been thought out whatsoever – and could've potentially gone horribly wrong – but at this point, Jo was desperate to get out. As much as she did care for Oswald, he was never going to leave Gertrud alone; while Jo was willing to leave her mother in order to keep them both alive.

As soon as Oswald had left, running into the bedroom, Jo took out her suitcase and threw a few of her favourite pieces of clothing inside, along with the basic items, before grabbing her purse and jacket and slipping out of the apartment. Although not before she scribbled a quick note for Oswald. It was hard to sum up all her feelings in a sentence or two, but all Jo could manage to write was a brief apology – as well as telling Oswald not to look for her. After all, this was the fresh start they both needed. That they both deserved.

However, as Jo rushed down the stairs, she was stopped in her tracks by an unexpected face.